Beijing – Wednesday (Jan. 21, 2010) Maxthon announced its browser already has in place technology that blocks zero-day “Aurora” hacking attacks such as the one that broke into computers run by 20 companies, including Google, Adobe, and Juniper Networks, making away with intellectual property.

The attack exploited a previously unknown vulnerability, nicknamed Aurora, in Internet Explorer. The attacks took advantage of buffers in a file, mshtml.dll, engineers at Maxthon explained. When the buffers are flooded with more data than they can store, it creates an opening to computer, through which a trojan is downloaded. The trojan program gives access to the compromised computer that the attacker can use to scan and download files.

The latest version of Maxthon Browser 2.5.12 beta, under testing since late 2009, has already included a security measure called “Safe Box” that protects against Zero-day vulnerabilities such as that exploited by Aurora. Zero-day refers to a weakness that has not yet been spotted or fixed by a program’s developers. When the first victim triggers the attack by opening an infected email, download, or Web site, that is the “zero-day.” Microsoft has so far not issued a security patch although it has promised one by January 21. Users of the latest version of Maxthon are already protected against such attacks. It can be downloaded at the Maxthon Forum, http://forum.maxthon.com/viewthread.php?tid=77881.

A person using Maxthon and who is tricked into a Aurora trap would see a dialog box similar to this one.

A harmless simulation of the Aurora vulnerability is provided for demonstration at
http://www.maxthon.com/test/security.htm

If your browser is not protected by methods such as the Safe Box in Maxthon, the demonstration could crash your computer or launch Windows’ calculator, but it does no permanent damage.

More information on Maxthon Browser is available at http://www.maxthon.com/index.htm
——By MaxthonGuy

MAXTHON — Seize the Web!

Maxthon CEO Sees Browser’s Inclusion on European ‘Choice Screen’ as a Win

Beijing–The CEO of Maxthon International said his browser’s inclusion on the European browser ballot—or “choice screen,” as it is now being called—is a “big win” for Maxthon because it recognizes that Maxthon is a full-fledged browser in its own right, not simply an add-on shell for Internet Explorer, as it is often depicted.

The decision to include Maxthon on the choice screen was made by the European Economic Commission as part of the commission’s settlement of an antitrust action with Microsoft. The screen will be used by European Web surfers will use to choose their default browser(s).

The decision puts 12 browsers on the choice screen. According to a commission FAQ, “the five most widely used browsers will be prominently displayed and the other seven browsers will be shown when the user scrolls sideways.”

Despite the basic separation of the browsers into first page and off page classes, the commission attempted to avoid giving any one browser an apparent advantage by being first on the ballot. The order of the browsers on each page will rotate each time the screen is loaded.

Speculation has been that the first five spots would be rotated among Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Firefox, and Opera. The remaining seven slots go to Maxthon, Avant Browser, AOL, K-Meleon, Flock, Sleipnir, and Slim Browser. The market share of all the browsers will be reevaluated every six months, making it possible for Maxthon to jump from the second screen to the first.

“We are pleased that Maxthon is on the ballot,” said Maxthon CEO and Founder Jeff Chen. “For too long many people have thought Maxthon was only an Internet Explorer add-on. This recognizes that Maxthon is its own, independent browser. Being on the ballot is a big win for us.”

Although numbers collected by research firms—and which browsers they include in their surveys—vary from one research firm to another, the counts by Net Applications, the most often quoted firm, indicate it’s a neck-and-neck face between Opera, in fifth place, and Maxthon, apparently in sixth place.

Emphasizing how close the competition among browsers is, Chen noted, “Our global share of the market is just one twentieth of one percent behind the market share of Opera,” Chen said. “In terms of a dollar, that’s like a penny cut into 20 slices, and Opera has just one more of those tiny slices that we do.

“We plan to change that,” he added.

Maxthon is ready to take on the European market, Chen said, regardless of ballot position.

“Maxthon became No. 2 in China without the advantages of some best ballot position. It’s been a success on the basis of its security, its wealth of features, stability, and old-fashioned word-of-mouth. Give us a little time, and we can have the same success in Europe.”

Microsoft has until mid-March 2010 to make the Choice Screen update available to users, at which point it will be directly available to Windows 7 users. The roll-out to all users of Windows XP and Vista will be completed within five months. The updates will remain available for five years.

The Choice Screen update will be displayed on more than 100 million PCs in Europe when it is launched in mid-March 2010 and to around 30 million new PC users each year over its five year term. In addition, from mid-March 2010 onwards, anyone can view and use the Choice Screen at www.browserchoice.eu .

Maxthon has been voted the best browser two years in a row in the Webware 100 Awards. In November downloads of Maxthon reached the 300 million mark. Maxthon is a free browser available in more than 40 languages. It may be downloaded at www.maxthon.com.

Further details about the European decision may be found in the commission’s written decision at http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/09/1941&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en, at a user’s guide to the choice screen at http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/09/559&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en,  and in the official FAQ at http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/09/558&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en.